820 First St. NE Suite 510 Washington, DC 20002 USA Tel: 1-202 408 1080 Fax: 1-202 408 1056 info@internationalbudget.org www.internationalbudget.org
Can civil society budget groups contribute to governance and combating corruption? www.internationalbudget.org
The growth of independent applied budget groups Definition: Budget Groups First wave: 1990 – 1999 Countries, catalysts and work Second wave: 1999 –
The case against civil society participation Budgets must be secret or volatile markets will result. CSOs can destroy budget integrity. CSOs pursue sectional interests. Government has mandate to prepare the budget. www.internationalbudget.org
Budget groups – Types of work Drafting: Priority setting (Kenya), PRSP (Uganda), MTEF (SA); Participatory budgeting (Brazil). Legislature: Literacy (Croatia), training (Mexico, SA), and indep. analysis. www.internationalbudget.org
Budget groups – Types of work Implementation: Impact information collation (Uganda, SA, India). Auditing: Tightening accountability (India) www.internationalbudget.org
Examples of impact Mexico Presidential Fund South Africa Public Finance Management Act Russia in-kind taxation Uganda education and health expenditures www.internationalbudget.org
The case for civil society participation May improve commitment, quality of decisions and impact by: Simplification and debate Training Bringing information to the debate Independent critical analysis Building accountability Critical ally of govt. www.internationalbudget.org
Civil society budget groups – Key success factors Focus on whole process Dedicated capacity Oversight partnership alliances. Skills Consistent funding Linking with communities www.internationalbudget.org